PRIMER: 52nd House District

Oct. 16, 2012

Written by

Patrick Wolande

Enquirer contributor

MARGARET CONDITTParty: Republican Residence: Liberty Twp. Political experience: Appointed to Ohio House in 2011; Liberty Twp. trustee for 3 years. Education: Bachelor’s in chemistry, University of Alabama; Ph.D. in analytical chemistry, University of Colorado.

BRANDON RUDIEParty: Democrat Residence: West Chester Political experience: None Education: Bachelor’s in international development studies and theatre, Calvin College

A 24-year-old political novice, Brandon Rudie, stepped into the race for the newly formed Ohio House District 52 – suburban West Chester and Liberty Township – after the original Democratic candidate withdrew following the primary.

And that makes three candidates.

Rudie, of West Chester, is joined by Margaret Conditt, 59, of Liberty Township, who represented the 55th House District before redistricting changed its boundaries, and Robert Coogan, 61, a Libertarian from Hamilton.

Conditt has the most political experience of the three – she was appointed to the House in 2011 to replace now-State Sen. Bill Coley, and earlier was a Liberty Township trustee for three years.

Before turning to state politics, Conditt was a manager with Procter & Gamble for 22 years.

Said Conditt: “I am proud to be a part of the 129th General Assembly that balanced the state budget without raising taxes, and that killed the ‘death tax’.”

She was referring to the change in state law that eliminated estate taxes, beginning in January.

Conditt said she remains proud of HB 125, also known as the “heartbeat bill,” which is among the nearly 50 House measures she co-sponsored in her year-long stint there. The bill, which bans abortion after a fetal heartbeat has been detected, passed Ohio’s House, but awaits Senate action and is unlikely to pass.

Meanwhile, Rudie steps into the race as a fresh face with a youthful outlook.

“It has been a baptism by fire,” said Rudie of his first campaign.

Rudie’s passion lies in reforming education. “Too much of the budget is coming from property tax… which is disenfranchising certain school districts,” he said. “Every year a large amount of tax money goes to Columbus” but doesn’t return to communities.

For example, he said the state’s rainy day fund is necessary, but not at $800 million while local schools and communities are struggling.

“My idea is to keep a percentage of that money [tax money sent to Columbus] right here,” he said. “We need to be recommitting that money to education.”

For those looking outside the major parties, there’s Libertarian Coogan, who is director of grant accounting for Greater Cincinnati HealthBridge.

“Neither the Republican nor the Democratic party reduce state spending, and we need to focus on that,” Coogan said, “We need to focus on individual liberties and individual responsibility when it comes to making sure we preserve our liberties.”

In regards to the economy, Coogan wrote in his Votesmart profile, “We must make Ohio attractive to new businesses by lowering taxes, municipal income tax reform, eliminating unnecessary regulations, and repealing markets that prevent free markets and competition.”